Chapter 15: An Unexpected Reunion! Sounds Like a Plan!

After doing some island jumping and gathering necessary resources while avoiding Marines, Felix, River and I reached the first sea restaurant on our path. The Parley Parlor!

The Parley Parlor was a restaurant that caters to pirates, marines and civilians alike. There were an extensive list of rules that patrons must abide by, which all revolved around keeping peace within the restaurant. These rules included, but were not limited to: no weapons, no fighting, no drawing attention to others or yourself, no bounty hunting, etc.

Within the first ten minutes of being there, I managed to recruit a chef working there to join. He simply wanted to travel around and learn more types of dishes for the restaurant he plans to open one day, featuring meals from all the Blues.

As Felix, River and I were eating at our table, we were discussing how great it was to finally have decent food that was actually seasoned and made by professional cooks, unlike us amateur chefs. While eating, Felix was boasting about a fight he had while sailing to find me. As he was, I noticed someone that looked vaguely familiar walk into the Parlor. "... and I was standing there, barbecue sauce on my-," Felix was saying before I interrupted.

"Sh, sh, sh. Shut up a moment," I shushed him with my finger on his lips mid-sentence. I squinted my eyes towards the tall, cloaked man and I caught a quick glimpse of a red tribal tattoo on his face. "Hold up, I know that guy!"

"And you needed to to put your finger on my lips to shut me up, just as I was getting to the good part, so you could figure out if you know a guy or not," Felix asked, not bothering to remove my finger as he moved his lips against it as he talked. "As I was saying, I told them that I was a bad bitch, they couldn't kill me..."

As Felix continued his story, I pushed my wooden chair back from the table and stood up. Making my way back to the front of the Parlor, I walked up to the man and his companions and asked, "Mister Dragon, is that you?"

The man's companions looked down at me cautiously while the man looked at me with slight curiosity in his eyes. "Who might you be," Dragon asked.

It then dawned on me that it has been a little over four years since I met Dragon and I do not look like the same 13 year-old he first met. "Oh, my bad," I told him as I lifted my hand up, palm facing upward, creating a slight swirl of air that rotated on my palm. "It's nice to see you again. The name's Anne."

"You're the girl from Goa Kingdom," Dragon stated in awe. He gave a half-grin before continuing, "I'm glad to see that you're still alive."

"That makes two of us," I said with a laugh. "Actually, my newly forming crew and I have a table over here, if you care to join, since it's rather busy? There's so much I want to tell you about!"

Dragon hesitated for a moment, but relented and accepted my offer. He and his few companions followed me over to our table. As we approached, Felix was finishing yet another story, "... and, oh my god, they were roommates... Oh, welcome back, Anne. Who're your friends?"

"Felix and River, this is someone I owe for his assistance a few years ago, Dragon," I introduced him. I then gestured to the boys in order as I introduced them, "Dragon, these two are my friends and crew members, Felix and River."

After all of the formalities, Dragon and company took their seats. Dragon and I exchanged stories of events that have occurred over the years. I told him that the two brothers that were in the blazing Grey Terminal that day made it out safely, but in the end, I still lost one of my three brothers because of the World Government and their Celestial Dragons. Dragon gave the slightest smirk at the mention of Luffy's name here and there, but it would always quickly disappeared.

Once we were both caught up with what we've been doing, Dragon placed his elbows on the table and interlaced his fingers together, a sign that a serious conversation was about to start . "I understand where you are coming from. You want to help those in need, those who do not have enough power to make a change. You want to help BE the change for a better world for everyone to live in by changing the World Government itself. That just so happens to be the main goal of the Revolutionary Army. It was briefly mentioned when we first met, and you were unable to join us due to having to care for your brothers. However, seeing as you are now out sailing for yourself, have you given it any thought to joining the Revolutionary Army?"

My eyes widened as I was caught off guard by his offer. "Oh, geez, I'm flattered for the invitation," I told him as I scratched the back of my head awkwardly. "It really is tempting, since our goals are basically identical. However, I'm going to have to decline at the moment. There is still so much of the world I have not seen or experienced personally yet, and I would like to discover it first. I want to do so before joining such a famous, or rather infamous, group depending on how you look at it. I believe that I need to see for myself what this world is really like before I see it through biased lens by working with the Revolutionary Army. I want to be free to make my own perceptions, and if they still line up with the Revolutionary Army's in the future, I'll consider joining then. Though, I can't speak for the boys."

"I understand, as that is very admirable," Dragon said with closed eyes and crossed arms with a nod. He then opened his eyes and asked, "Although, would you still consider helping us with a job?"

I raised an intrigued eyebrow as I asked, "Oh? What kind of job? I do still owe you for your help with Gray Terminal."

"It's actually one that aligns with both of our goals, and will also assist you in gaining experience with the World Government's corruptness for yourself," Dragon began to explain. "The Revolutionary Army has received rumors of an island where the nobles have been bleeding its lower-class citizens dry for centuries, and it has only been getting worse over the years, as there has been a devastating drought, causing most of the crops to fail. Since the villagers couldn't produce profitable harvests, they couldn't sell the crops to get the money that the nobles' demand. This infuriated the nobles and now they are demanding payment in the form of young men for labor work and to take part in duels for entertainment, and young women for slaves/dancers/candy wives. Though, most of the time, it is young, beautiful women they chose to take as payment."

"The audacity of the nobles," I growled with a distasteful glare. Dragon further explained that, before he confronts the kingdom, he needs to make sure the rumors are true and needs to send recon to gather information from inside the main mansion. He stated that he had planned on sending in a team and, before he could continue, I interrupted and said, "Let us help with that. Felix and I could go to the village, and I could try to stand out to be taken to where the other captives are. Once I am taken, Felix can send a signal of some kind to River, who could relay the plan's progress to you guys."

"But isn't that a little dangerous," River asked in slight concern.

I gave a simple shrug and replied with, "Only if there is Haki or Sea Stone involved. Besides, Dragon said it himself. It's usually the young women that are taken. So, if I am taken, I can gather intel on how many captives there are and get them all to the main gates for a massive break-in on your guys' part. I mean, I'm assuming there's a main gate. There is ALWAYS a main gate."

"That is roughly what the plan was, give or take a few details," Dragon informed. "The question is, are you boys alright with her idea?"

Felix and River were a bit surprised that Dragon was addressing them. "Er, well, I mean, I guess so. After all, Anne is our captain! I think it goes without saying that we'll follow her lead, whatever it is she decides to do. I mean, we already have mugshots."

"A mugshot? I don't even drink coffee," Felix joked with a chuckle. "Anyways, it sounds rather fun."

"You heard the boys... Now then, when do we begin?"